Jens Voigt: Life lessons from 30+ years of riding

Legendarily tough rider Jens Voigt shares 33 years’ worth of cycling wisdom: a shortcut-free masterclass in hard training Jens Voigt escapes on stage twenty of the 2013 Tour de France. Photo: Graham Watson We sat down with breakaway hardman Jens Voigt to hear all about his training from over 30 years of cycling. Endurance alone isn’t enough

“In the early days, in East Germany, most of my training was long and slow. I could ride Paris-Moscow at 41.5kph, but when I turned professional I realised that races aren’t decided at that speed; they are decided in the crucial five or 10 minutes of max effort — when I needed to be stronger.” Train specifically for the hardest parts of the race

Jens leads an escape on stage one of the 2014 Tour de France. Photo: Graham Watson

“I cut down the volume of training and did more quality, less quantity. I already had endurance; I didn’t need any more. What I needed was to train for the crucial part of the race.

“I did 10 minutes and one kilometre maximal efforts to replicate jumping after a breakaway or trying to create a break. I’d ride five times a four- or five-minute […]